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Well worth the wait. All of these are very musical performances, and they really bring out the lyricism - the song-like qualities - of these pieces. Everyone captured the Mendelssohn spirit that made this music so popular from the first time these were published.

Rostosky
3000 Post Club Member
Registered: 04/30/11
Posts: 3339
Loc: Lost in cyberspace.in the UK.

The Reiki challenge:

Take one so called reiki master.Take one hard boiled egg and place on a plate on a table in front of "master"Take five fertilised eggs from under a chicken and place on plate.Shuffle eggs.

Let the game commence.

"Reiki master" has to hover his hand over each egg to "feel the life force energy" in each egg and then choose to smash the one he or she thinks has no life force energy ( the hard boiled one) against his or hers own forehead.

Game continues until one egg is left or until "reiki master" gets it right, which conincidently may well turn out to be the same thing.

Now that there's less practising to do - but more listening! - you might want a change of composer today while you're playing the new reiki egg game.

How strange it is to me that I can tire of listening intently to a professional recording of Mendelssohn but I'm hoplessly addicted to a few of the recital pieces and have played some of them several times every day since they were posted!

Seriously well done, Rossy and Wayne!

In the hope of seeing renewed vigour on this thread here's some Sunday Classics to tickle the spirits and keep you going to the afternoon and today's Op. 85.

Richard, how delightful to see you back here on Sunday!!! I've just finished listening to your first two postings, and truly enjoyed them. I'll be listening to the other two posts a bit later after I've gotten some other things done.

I've just finished listening the Mendelssohn performances and I share your feelings about the beauty of each one of the performances. I know there will be more to come. I'm looking forward to listening and enjoying!

Kudos to Wayne and Rossy for the monumental task of organizing, recruiting the participants, and putting it all together. I can hardly wait to hear the rest of the performances.

Right now, it's time for me to get some things done at home. Off I go!

I got a nice little package Saturday. Bill's mom sent me some old sheet music that she found mixed in with some of her old paperwork(she took lessons as a child). It's been fun playing around with. It's called "Rhapsodie" by Maxwell Eckstein. I found a recording of it on Youtube.

We were watching a documentary of Fugazi the other night. They were part of the DC hardcore scene. But this is actually a neat piano piece by one of the members. Sounds like nothing else they do.. it's sad and almost pretty.I hadn't heard it in a while, and wanted to share.

Hi everyone,I'm just checking in briefly. It's an extremely busy time right now, and don't have much time to post. Don't be too alarmed if you don't hear from me for a while. I am viewing the postings. However, I just don't have much time to write, or post music right now. My retirement day is quickly approaching, and I have a lot of things to get done.

Aimee, I loved the Rhapsodie. I'll check out your more recent postings later.

Recaredo, I really wish I could have participated in the Mendelssohn recital. However, I was with everyone in spirit. Everyone who performed did a magnificent job! Congratulations everyone!

While it is very tempting for me to participate in the Grieg recital, I won't have time for that this year. My piano teacher thinks I am ready to start work on preparing for my own recital. We've already laid out a preliminary plan for this year to complete some pieces I've been working on the last few years. Once I'm fully retired (and I get a little rest), I'll be able to spend more practice time with those pieces and get them completed. One of those pieces will include Gymnopedie 1 which I performed in our themed recital last year

I like the Rhapsodie a lot as well. I really want to learn it and play it for his parents. The second half is where I'm going to run into problems. I might just wait on it. I want to get the Grieg done, and get it right, since I love that piece. I've been eying it for a while, and want to do it proper justice.

That's great that you will have your own recital.. you better post it!

Now this is rather interesting. There's this album with various artists called, "Son of Rogues Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs & Chanteys." It's all pirate and sea songs. There's some interesting collaborations like Tom Waits(with Keith Richards) Patti Smith(with Johnny Depp), and Michael Stipe(with courtney love?!). Then there's Macy Gray, Ivan Neville, Sean Lennon, Susanna Hoff, Nick Cave, Iggy Pop... what a mix! It's got many different styles of music, so I guess I will have to buy this thing.

I'm glad everyone liked the Sons of Rogues Gallery stuff.. I will be ordering it for myself in the next few days. There was another album before that, and I might snag it too.

I was thinking about playing more off of Jack White's Blunderbuss, but I think I've done that too many times(but I fall in love with him every time I hear it! It's soooo good!)

New Orlean's Jazz & Heritage Fest is this weekend, continuing from last. It's funny because the headliners aren't jazz(there's 12 stages, but I really think most people only show up for the Acura Stage, which has the big draws). I believe Rossy probably intervened. Tonight, Fleetwood Mac is playing. Other "jazz" artists this year: Black Keys, Widespread Panic, Daryl Hall and John Oates, Maroon 5, Patti Smith, Dave Matthews, Billy Joel, and John Mayer.

That's all great and all, but the title bugs me. What do any of these things have to do with New Orleans, Jazz or its heritage?

Anyway. Done ranting. I actually brought it up because I saw Billy Joel was here last week, and thought of Pianojoy. Where has she wandered off to?

Rostosky
3000 Post Club Member
Registered: 04/30/11
Posts: 3339
Loc: Lost in cyberspace.in the UK.

That sounds like the best type of jazz festival possible AimeeO: one with hardly any jazz, so I dont need to intervene, it looks like the organisers have done a great job in the abundance of not jazz related artists.

I will send them a check though for services to music , and they can spend it on ammeretto, women and intoxicants; and waste the rest.

Thanks for bringing this marvellous musical extravaganza with its highly desirable lack of jazz to my attention.

may the g o d s of WMM grant you your deepest wishes and innermost desires.

_________________________

Rise like lions after slumber,in unvanquishable number. Shake your chains to earth like dewwhich in sleep has fallen on you. Ye are many,they are few. Shelley

LOL I would hold up on that check.. there are quite a few jazz artists wandering around from the other stages, so they might give them some of that money to them! Here is a link so you can make informed decisions with your money: http://www.nojazzfest.com/ I would rather you spend money on amaretto, women, and intoxicants for yourself.

There are two possible theories: a) they are trying to edge out Jazz and make the musicians feel badORb) maybe they are using non-Jazz musicians as gateway drugs to Jazz

Regardless, their methods are misleading and I do not approve. I also don't approve of any event that has no good parking and involves port-a-potties (or Pot 'O Gold I think is one of the brands here). They also are sponsored by a single beer company, and it is not my beer of choice and it is not fair to me only offer me that kind. I feel it is rather discriminatory towards me and my needs.

I'm so fortunate that I have WMM in my life. Reiki followers have no idea what they're missing. I should start going door to door to spread my beliefs.

Rostosky
3000 Post Club Member
Registered: 04/30/11
Posts: 3339
Loc: Lost in cyberspace.in the UK.

AimeeO , what it is, is this: You have to be "attuned" to appreciate WMM, only folk who are "attuned" ($300.) can understand it. You have to go to two two hour preparation classes over a weekend to get attuned and become WMM "Master"

_________________________

Rise like lions after slumber,in unvanquishable number. Shake your chains to earth like dewwhich in sleep has fallen on you. Ye are many,they are few. Shelley

Thanks Recaredo, I actually remember those Morecambe and Wise programmes being broadcast and was very fond of them - especially when Andre Previn was involved - he was a bit of a superstar at the time and the choir I was in was conducted by him a few times. So this clip is a bit of history for me.

Greetings everyone. I'm just stopping by briefly. I wanted to answer Aimee's question about my retirement day. It's set for mid June. Right now, however, I must get back to some cleaning at home. Some family members are coming to town to visit and have a pre-retirement celebration with me.

About Previn.... - the choir I was in then (mid 80s)was about 100 strong so I never knew Previn personally - perhaps not a bad thing. I remember when we were rehearsing Walton's Belshazzar's feast (especially), and Tippett's A Child of our time with the royal Philharmonic orchestra with him he lost patience with us a few times. A feature of the oratorio 'Belshazzer's Feast' by Walton is the complex interplay of parts at speed, and the rhythm has to be exactly right for the music to work properly. Imagine getting a choir of 100 and an orchestra of as many to perform so 'tight' and together rhythmically that it can turn on a sixpence - that was what was needed to do justice to the music.

The choir was slightly sluggish in responding and Previn said so in a very rude way! This ruffled a few feathers of some choir members and they complained to our choir master, Lazlo Heltay, himself a distinguished international musician.

All ended well though. Previn won the battle of wills, eventually succeeding in getting us to sing with more rhythm. To some in the choir - they weren't used to having a firework up their backsides, metaphorically speaking. The conductor then made a point of announcing to everyone what a good choir we were, and it was true then. The recording with the RPO of Belshazzer's feast which resulted was nominated for a grammy that year. Uncomfortable for a bit, but well worth it in the end.

Augustina, thanks for the Chinese piece! Very pretty! (Will also have to show to BillyO.. he will think she is hot. So predictable, that BillyO.)

I will watch the Previn bit tonight when I am taking a break from finishing my new and improved Mendelssohn for the ABF recital!

Ha! Rossy, it's funny you should post that. Remember a few months ago when we were all up in arms about the lameness of Bowie's first single off his new album? And that boooring video? Well, I guess he decided to spice things up a bit on his next one. There are explicit warnings to this one. It stars Gary Oldman and Marion Cotillard.